Friday, August 25, 2023

Six Questions for Jennifer Cox, Editor, Illustrated Worlds

Illustrated Worlds publishes fiction to 5,000 words and art. Submissions “should contain an element of fantasy, dark fantasy, horror, whimsy, magic realism, mythology, folklore or fairy tale type inspiration.” Read the complete guidelines here.


SQF: Why did you start this magazine?


Jennifer Cox: I started the magazine for a variety of reasons. On a personal note, I was looking for a sense of purpose after losing my job at the start of the pandemic. I wanted to do something that was important to me. I've been a writer and artist most of my life and had always wanted to combine the two. Storytelling with both words and illustrations has been my passion and goal. Then it hit me, and I didn't know why I hadn't thought of it before. Maybe because I never had the funds, but when my mom passed away in 2021, she left me a small inheritance. Not enough to help me buy a house or anything but enough to put it toward starting the magazine. Suddenly, I felt alive again.


I also loved the idea of helping other creators find an audience and give them a chance to be heard and seen. I've been helped along my path by a variety of editors, art instructors and other authors, and I wanted to give back by supporting creators' dreams of publication. I believe in the power of fiction and art, that it can encourage people to ponder, think things they never thought before and sometimes even transform them. Truth and beauty is worth sacrificing for, and even though the magazine still isn't breaking even financially, I'll keep working to build it into a successful venture. 


So, yeah, for myself, for the creators and finally for the world! I will conquer all obstacles yet! (Giving myself a pep talk there.)



SQF: What are the top three things you look for in a submission and why?


JC: The first thing I look for is fairly mundane - a decent understanding of basic grammar and spelling. There's nothing harder to read than a 5,000 word manuscript with no paragraph breaks, where the main character's name is spelled five different ways and none of the dialogue has quotation marks around it. Maddening. And honestly, I sometimes give up halfway through submissions like that. 


I also look for some knowledge of what a story is. I've received submissions that are essentially a list of things that happened to an imaginary someone we have no reason to care about, manuscripts that lack description of any kind, or the opposite, all description but nothing happens. Don't send me five pages of world-building exercises, a play by play of a video or role-playing game or endless beautiful paragraphs about what the Renaissance Fair looks and smells like. Unless there's a character who acts or reacts, possibly developing as a person, learning a lesson, changing in some way, etc it's not really a short story. 


And the third requirement is for the artists out there. I prefer traditional artistic mediums - pencil, ink, paint, photography. I have accepted a piece or two created digitally, but I'm picky about it. Don't submit digital collages of known characters that might violate copyright issues and unskilled Photoshop creations. If it looks like a computer made it, I don't want it. 



SQF: What most often turns you off to a submission?


JC: Besides not following the above mentioned requirements, I don't trust art and stories that aren't submitted by the creator. I thought it was a fluke the first time when someone claimed to be the artist's mother submitting her son's work, and when I rejected it and asked out of curiosity why he wasn't submitting his own work, I received a rude response full of anger. Okay. Then it happened again with someone who just claimed to know the author. Unless it's from an agent who tells me they are representing a client, I'm not going to entertain a story that may be stolen or sent under false pretenses. Abusive emails in response aren't going to change my mind. 



SQF: What do you look for in the opening paragraph(s)/stanza(s) of a submission?


JC: It's such an ordinary thing, but the first paragraph has to grab me and mentally pull me out of the chair I'm sitting in to immerse me in the author's world. It's hard to say exactly what that is. Some start with dialogue, some with description, but all have the magical ability to transport me. If I forget I'm reading a submission, if it inspires me to feel or think, if I'm sorry it ended but there was something satisfying and/or poetic about the end, you've got me hooked and likely have an acceptance. 



SQF: Many editors list erotica, or sex for sex sake, as hard sells. What are hard sells for your publication?


JC: Traditional high fantasy or Dungeons and Dragons type story lines. It's hard to make those sound fresh and original, because the market is overrun with Tolkien knockoffs and gamers who think their campaign will be interesting enough to entertain others who aren't playing, and that's rarely the case. Erotica would have to be fantasy or horror based, but sex for no reason doesn't fit this particular publication. I have readers that are teenagers, and though I'm not easily offended, I do keep in mind that this publication isn't really the right market for that sort of art or writing. 



SQF: What one question on this topic do you wish I'd asked that I didn't? And how would you answer it?


JC: I suppose I would have liked to be asked about stories and art containing humor. I enjoy writers and artists that can turn dark fantasy and horror themes upside down, and instead of shivering at my desk in frightened delight, I'm laughing at the sheer ridiculous audacity it takes to make fun of serious topics. There's something quintessentially human about humor, and as long as you have a sense of the comedic, all hope can't be lost.


Thank you, Jennifer. We all appreciate your taking time from your busy schedule to participate in this project.


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